Police crackdown on Somersworth crosswalk enforcement

SOMERSWORTH — 42 summonses were issued by the Somersworth Police Department during a crosswalk enforcement operation that spanned just a day and half.

According to Chief Dean Crombie of the Somersworth Police Department, those 42 summonses could have tripled if the department had more manpower during the crosswalk drill.

"The goal was to raise awareness about safety," Crombie said of the operation, which spanned all of last Friday and part of Tuesday. "People need to be alert while they're out on the road."

The recent operation comes less than 3 weeks after a 70-year-old Somersworth woman was seriously injured on September 6 while attempting to cross the road on a crosswalk in the area of Constitutional Way and High Street. The woman was later air lifted to a Massachusetts hospital for her injuries.

And motorists passing through the Hilltop City in the coming weeks should continue to be attentive behind the wheel — Crombie stated a red light enforcement operation will take place sometime within the next two weeks.

"This isn't just a local issue it's really a national problem," Crombie said Thursday. "People don't always stop for red lights."

It's also another way the Somersworth Police Department hopes to work toward an overall safer community, for both motorists and pedestrians.

And with the heads up now out to the public, Crombie is hoping for better results than the crosswalk operation yielded. "Our goal is to have no violations," he said.